Tutorial - Quick and Easy

Need a handmade card but don't have a lot of time to create one?

This might be the tutorial you're looking for!

1. You'll need a white card blank, a set of stamps, and two complementary, water-based ink pads.

2. Apply both ink colours to your stamps and stamp the entire card front, allowing some of the images to extend beyond the edges of the card.

3. Swipe the same ink pads over a non-porous surface, like a glass plate or an acrylic block. Use a water brush to pick up a mixture of the colours and quickly paint your images. Don't worry if you have white spaces, or if the paint appears darker in some areas, that adds to the watercolour effect.

4. Choose a contrasting colour in the space around the images. Again, don't worry about complete coverage or getting the colour even. 

5. Add some extra colour for areas that need definition. I added some dark red marker to the eyes of my fish - black would have been too much contrast.

6. Stamp a sentiment using one of the inks you used to colour your images, then attach it to your card. Remember to keep it simple.

7. Add a little glitter, some rhinestones, or drops of liquid mediums if desired.

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Tutorial - Colouring The Fantails

Flowing, translucent fins and shimmering scales are the iconic features of fantail goldfish, and today I'd like to share a colouring technique for achieving that look.

I started by stamping one of the images in blue, water-based ink on a piece of blending card. The water-based ink doesn't react with the alcohol markers, so smearing and smudging shouldn't be an issue.

Colour the entire image with the B91 marker.

Use the B93 marker to darken the fins where they meet the body of the fish. Flick the strokes outward from the fish's body toward the edges of the fins.

Blend the colours together by adding another layer of B91 marker over the top of the B93. Don't overwork the colour or you'll end up with a mottled look. If you want to work further on an area, come back to it after it's had a chance to dry.

To give the illusion of translucency, use the B93 marker to darken the parts of the fin that pass in front of the body, such as the pelvic fin. You want to follow the shape of the body to give the impression that it can been seen through the fin.

Do the same thing where the fins pass in front of each other, such as the curls on the dorsal fin. Use the marker to describe the shape of each fin as it disappears behind the others. You can make a very light guide line with a pencil first if you'd prefer.

Use the B93 marker to darken all the areas where the fins and tail pass in front of another part of the fish. Allow to dry for a few minutes, and then add another layer in the same areas.

To colour the body of the fish, add a layer of B93 all over. Work your strokes along the body of the fish, from nose to tail, rather than side to side. Following the shape of the fish will give you a better result.

Use the B95 marker to darken the body, avoiding the belly, chin and edges of the gills. Start to give some texture to the scales by colouring little circular areas around the belly. 

Continue to darken the body with the B97 marker. Apply the darker colour over the B95, making sure that some of the light colour is still visible. There should be three distinct colour areas visible on the body of your fish, with an obvious light, mid and dark range. Use the tip of the marker to describe the shape of the scales with a little more detail. 

Use the B99 sparingly. A little around the end of the body, under the gills and scales and in front of the eye should be enough.

Now you're going to work all the way back down through the colours again, starting with the B97. Colour over the top of the B99 but not quite all the way to the B95. You want to blend the colours a little, but not so that you lose all the texture you've added to the scales.

Use the B95 next, colouring over the top of the B97 and almost to the B93. Work your way down the markers blending the colour that's one step darker. 

The final task is working on the eye, which usually forms the focal point of any image. I've used a black pen to colour the pupil and add a little shadow around the edges. A dot of white brings life to the eyes. (CLICK HERE for a tutorial on colouring eyes)

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Hot Tip Tuesday

Today's quick tip is for those who love to make shaker cards.

Whether you fill your shaker with seed beads, pearls or sequins, glue a few to the background so that they're always visible, even when the remaining items have fallen to the bottom of the window. Not only will you always have a little sparkle whatever way you card is positioned, but the items that are glued in place will often catch others creating an ever changing scene.

Light Through Water

Today I want to show you a technique that resembles the effect of light shining through water. This technique would also work for sunlight shining through clouds, or perhaps starlight or moonlight shining down on an object. I've used the technique to create a shaker card, which I intended to resemble a goldfish pond filled with light and sparkling bubbles.

Stamp the images on a piece of smooth cardstock and colour with pencils. You'll need to colour the whole image, including the background. Try to lay down lots of colour so that you'll have plenty of pigment to create the contrast between light and dark.

This bit is a little daunting, I must admit, but the results are definitely worth it. Take a nice soft, clean eraser and drag one of the long edges in a straight line, from the top of the coloured image to the bottom. As the eraser moves along, it takes away a layer of colour. As you can see below, it starts off as quite a crisp line, then starts to blend and blur as the eraser makes it's way through the pencil. This gives the impression of light dispersing as it gets deeper into the water.

It's important to CLEAN THE ERASER with each pass you make. You don't want to start out with a dirty eraser or you won't get that nice crisp start to your light beam. Make each beam of light wider at the bottom than the top, again, to give the impression that the light is dispersing as it makes it's way through the water.

I added a third fish over the top of the background to give the finished card some depth. It was secured in place with foam tape, which brings it flush against the acetate sheet making it appear to be in the foreground of the scene.

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Much Happiness

The shape of one of the goldfish in the Fantail Goldfish set made me think of the Yin and Yang symbol from ancient Chinese philosophy. I stamped the same image twice, then coloured them both orange, one in darker shades than the other. To get exactly the right placement, I actually fussy cut around the images and adhered them to a pretty piece of green paper.

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